Glyphosate, a chemical compound developed in the 1980s, has been used as an active ingredient of agricultural herbicides, especially in controlling major annual and perennial grasses and broad-leafed weeds. When applied to plants, Glyphosate inhibits the plant's EPSPS (5-enolypryuvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase) enzyme.
The chemical composition and formula of Glyphosate is C6H9Na3N2O10P2. It's molecular weight is 422.09. The production of Glyphosate and its mechanism of inhibiting plant growth need not be discussed or disclosed and are not part of the claimed invention in present application.
Some crops, such as cotton, corns, soybeans and other “Glyphosate-tolerant” GMO crops, contain artificially modified EPSPS genes that make the crops tolerant to Glyphosate, at least as claimed by providers of such genetically modified crops. The term “Round-Up Ready” is widely used to describe these genetically modified crops that are claimed to be tolerant to Glyphosate, since the active ingredient in the Round-Up herbicide is Glyphosate.
Field tests on use of Glyphosate, however, showed substantial adverse effect to the growth of Round-Up Ready crops. This adverse effect is referred to as the Glyphosate's phytotoxicity in present application.
Present invention discloses the use of three PGR safener additives that can be mixed into Glyphosate solution to reduce the phytotoxicity, so that the weeds' growth is inhibited, while growth of the desired crops is not.